Malhotra struggled to find a studio to finance Hichki, since the film, which had begun scripting in 2013 after he acquired the rights to Front of the Class, was felt to lack potential for the box office.

Principal photography was handled by Avinash Arun and took place in Mumbai between April and June 2017, with Meenal Agarwal as the art director and Vaibhavi Merchant providing the choreography.

Naina Mathur, a Bachelor of Education and Master of Science, wants to be a teacher, but is repeatedly rejected as she suffers from Tourette syndrome, which causes her to make uncontrollable sounds likened to hiccups.

Despite failing for five years, she is supported by her mother Sudha and her younger brother Vinay, while her father Prabhakar sees little potential in the idea and wants her to take a banking job.

After the exam days, they pass but are accused of cheating when Shyamlal confesses to the plan, and the principal decides to expel them during the prefect-pinning ceremony.

In 2013, Siddharth P. Malhotra acquired the rights to Brad Cohen's 2005 autobiography Front of the Class and started writing the screenplay along with Ambar Hadap and Ganesh Pandit, with Ankur Chaudhry and Raaj Mehta joining them later.

[4][5] The film was titled Hichki, which Malhotra felt was a suitable word for describing prejudice and social stigma against Tourette disorder.

According to him, the production houses believed that the film lacked commercial viability, telling him: "Who would watch the story of a teacher suffering from Tourette syndrome?"

Avinash Arun worked as the cinematographer,[11][12] with Vaibhavi Merchant doing the choreography and Meenal Agarwal finishing the production design.

[4] The soundtrack to Hichki was composed by Jasleen Royal and the lyrics were written by Raj Shekhar, Jaideep Sahni, Neeraj Rajawat, Aditya Sharma, and David Klyton.

[40] The entertainment portal Bollywood Hungama said that Mukerji had delivered an effervescent performance and made Hichki a good film despite a predictable story, believing she would make the audience empathise with her character and that the actress portrayed it zestfully.

[43] In her two-and-a-half-star review, Sukanya Verma of Rediff.com panned the melodramatic screenplay but appreciated Mukerji and described the film as an "out-and-out" show for her.

[44] Mayank Shekhar, writing for Mid-Day, was critical of the film, calling it the desi version of the American coming-of-age drama Dead Poets Society (1989).

[45] Filmfare's critic Devesh Sharma thought Mukerji looked as if she had not taken a sabbatical from full-time acting, lauding her dramatic confrontational scenes with Neeraj Kabi, and Bhawana Somaaya expressed appreciation of her for playing against type.

[46][47] Reviewing for The Times of India, Rachit Gupta said that she hoped the film focused not only on Naina's classroom struggle but also on her personal life, especially her conflict with her father.

[49] In the words of NDTV's Saibal Chatterjee, "Rani Mukerji's energetic, engaging performance apart, Hichki is a huff-and-puff show marked by too much mush and fuss.

"[50] From the Hindustan Times, Rohit Vats rated the film two-and-a-half stars, complimenting Mukerji's straightforward, confident performance and those of Kabi and the student actors.

[51] Richard James Havis of South China Morning Post found Mukerji's spirited performance enhancing an otherwise predictable story.

[56] From the Daily News and Analysis, Chaya Unnikrishnan termed Hichki a slice-of-life film with inspiring themes and was impressed by Mukerji's acting.

[57] Namrata Joshi praised her tics used in the right measure and time, but noted the actors cast as her parents (Sachin and Supriya Pilgaonkar) did not get enough scope.

[58] Raja Sen and Aditya Shrikrishna from The New Indian Express said Mukerji was successful at making her tics look natural,[59][60] and Anna M. M. Vetticad described the actress as one of the "biggest strengths" of Hichki.

[61] Billing it as a comeback vehicle for Mukerji, The Indian Express' Shalini Langer acclaimed Malhotra for not adding romantic songs or sequences.

[62] The Tamil magazine Ananda Vikatan named it as the best example of what teachers should teach to their students,[63] with Anupama Chopra summarising, "[It] is a genuinely earnest film made with heart.

[65] The film was a commercial success in India and abroad, with the trade analyst Girish Johar telling The Indian Express that its business largely relied on the audience's word-of-mouth.